Google’s Wireless Service Is For Nexus 6 Only

Google’s upcoming wireless service has created waves in the wireless cellular industry. The new service from the search giant dubbed as “Nova” will choose the best signal out of the partner carriers and use it for the data usage, thereby providing best possible speeds.

However here is the catch: The service will work only on one phone.

Yes, you guessed it right. That phone is Google Nexus 6, the company’s latest flagship, developed by Motorola, the company which was bought by Google in 2012 and has now been sold to Lenovo.

Under the Nova wireless service, Google is to become a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). As an MVNO, Google would rent networks already owned by AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile to provide service to its users. The main idea behind Nova is to provide best possible speeds to the users. This is made possible by selecting the strongest signal and use it to meet user requests.

For example, there is a place around the block where Verizon has a stronger signal as compared to AT&T. You try to access internet while sitting at that place. Google’s service would use Verizon’s signal to give you internet access in that place. Then you move on to another place where AT&T has stronger signal than Verizon. Now, you will get internet access via AT&T’s network.

It will all happen behind the scenes automatically, and you would not be required to choose the network of your choice as long as you are using Google’s service.

But according to The Wall Street Journal, you can only use the service on Nexus 6. The search giant has also restricted the service to the latest flagship only. WSJ‘s sources further revealed that it will not work on previous Nexus devices including LG’s Nexus 5 — the phone that has seen huge number of sales and has been widely adopted because of its affordable price.

The people familiar with the matter also told WSJ that the reason behind this decision is that the service requires “close coordination between hardware and software.” Since that is only available to Google through Nexus program, so the company has decided to make the service available on Nexus 6. However, the decision to keep previous Nexus devices out of the service is surprising.

Moreover, Google plans to set standards with its Nexus devices and services to guide other Android smartphone manufacturers on how to build their future devices.

“Our goal here is to drive a set of innovations which we think the system should adopt,” Google’s product chief Sundar Pichai said this week.

But we believe the move is to set an ecosystem of services and products that will ultimately make people use Google’s products. This is what Apple is doing, and Xiaomi also carries same strategies.

Google’s wireless service is to launch in coming weeks, but it might get delayed.